Mississippi Man Pleads Guilty to Hacking the El Paso Independent School District Computer System

U.S. Attorney’s Office
September 19, 2012

Western District of Texas(210) 384-7100

United States Attorney Robert Pitman announced that in El Paso this morning, 21-year-old Kaleb Harper Ketchens of Meridian, Mississippi, pleaded guilty to federal charges in connection with an unauthorized access of the El Paso Independent School District computer system.

Appearing before Senior United States District Judge David Briones, Ketchens pleaded guilty to two counts of computer fraud and one count of fraud and related activity in connection with identification documents, authentication features, and information.

According to authorities, on or about August 29, 2011, Ketchens illegally accessed the school district’s computer system and without lawful authority obtained the means of identification of another person, that is, names and student identification numbers, then displayed that information on an Internet website.

Ketchens, who is currently in federal custody, faces up to five years in federal prison per charge. Sentencing is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. on December 12, 2012.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Donna Miller is prosecuting this case on behalf of the Goverment.